Recoil pad for guns



MY 12, 1931- A. H. AMMANN 1,805,273

RECOIL PAD FOR GUNS Filed Sept.' 3, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet IlA May 12, l93lA. H. AMMANN 1,805,273'

Patented' May 12, 1931 UNITED STATES Pai-aar carica ALBERT H. AMMANN, OFCHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO JOSTAM MANUFACTURING 1 CO.,` OF CHICAGO,ILLINOIS, A COPARTNERSHIF COI'IPOSED OF W. D. STANN'ARD AND Applicationled September The present invention relates to recoil pads for guns andis particularly concerned with improvements in the type of recoil padhaving a. relatively hardbase plate Jfor attachment to a gun stock, anda relatively soft rubber cushion carried by the base plate forengagement with the shoulder of the mechanism. p Y

One of the most important objects of the invention is the provision of arecoil pad in which the resiliency or cushioning effect may beconveniently adapted to suit the needs of each individual marksman,preferably without changing the external appearance or othercharacteristics of the recoil pad.

Another object of the invention is the provision of recoil pads for gunshavinga relatively stiff supporting member, a relatively soft shoulderengaging member, and an intermediate cushioning structure, thecharacteristics. of which may be varied at will to adapt the recoil padto the individual feel of the marksman at any point of en-v gagementwith his shoulder.

Another obj ect of the invention is the provision of a recoil pad of theclass described which is provided with a plurality of intermediatecushioning devices of graduated length, adapted to comeinto operativeengagement with other parts of the pad at Y different stages ofdistortion of the pad, to

produce a pad of predetermined characteristics. I v

Another object is theprovision of a recoil Vpad lia-ving a plurality ofair pockets, the

air volume of which may be regulated to v change the characteristics ofthe recoil pad to suit the individual needs of' any marksman. `Anotherobject is the provision of a recoil pad in which the resiliency may becontrolled or predetermined by the combined ef-V feet of pneumaticpockets and other resilient devices adapted for successive operation at'different stages of distortion orp the pad.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from thefollowing description.-l and from the accompanying i drawings in whichsimilar characters of reference indicate similar parts through theseveral vlews. l

REcoiL. PAD Foie vsans s, 192e. serial no. 389,953.

Referring to the drawings of which there are two sets:

Figure 1 is an elevational view showing the recoil pad ofthe presentinvention'applied to agun stock; V

Figure 2 is a rear elevational view of the recoil pad of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a' sectional view of the pad and stock taken on the plane ofthe line 3 3Y in Figure 2 looking in the direction of the arrows; s

Figure l is a sectional view taken on the plane of the line Ll--ll ofFigure 3 looking in the direction of the arrows;

Figure 5 is a sectional View taken on the plane 5 5 of Figure 2 lookingin the ydirection of the arrows; i Y

Figure 6 is a view similar to Figure 3 of a` modied form of theinvention; and

Figure 7is a view similar to Figure '4 of the saine modiiicatio'n takenon the planeof the line T ef Figure 6. i

Referring to Figures 1 to 5, 10 indicates a conventional gun stock whichmay be provided with a recoil pad, indicated in its entirety at 11, of asize adapted to substantially lit the end of the gun stock 10.

In the embodiments which have been chosen to illustrate the inventionthe recoil pad 11 preferably consists of a supporting member 12 ofrelatively stili lmaterial, a shoulder engaging member or cushion 13 andan intermediate cushioning device 14. However, it should be understoodythat in some embodiments of the invention the supporting member,shoulder engaging member, and intermediate cushioning device'may 'all beconstructed of an integral piece of material. l

In the preferred embodiment the supporting member 12'consists of arelatively still plate of hard rubber, the outer boundary 15 of whichconforms substantially to the shape of the gun stock 10. The supportingplate 12 is provided with a plurality of counter.- sunk apertures 16adapted to receive wood screws 17 forattaching the supporting plate 12to the gun stock 10. The shoulder engaging portion 13 of the recoil pad11 preferably consists of relatively soft rubber,the outer boundary 18of the shoulder engaging member also conforming substantially to theshape of the end of the gun stock 10. The shoulder engaging member 13 isprovided With a laterally curved or convex rear surface 19, giving theextreme edges 2O of the shoulder engaging member greater flexibility toprevent any possibility of undesirable rigidity at the rear corners ofthe pad.

rlhe intermediate cushioning device 14 preferably consists of arelatively flat body of resilient material, such as sponge rubber,having an outer surface 21 which also conforms substantially to theshape of the gun stock supporting plate 12 and shoulder engaging member13.

There the gun stock 10 is provided With a. taper, the shape of therecoil pad 11 is preferably such that it forms a Continuation of the gunstock 10'along the same line of taper as shown in Figures 1 and 2. Thusthe intermediate cushion 14 and the shoulder engaging member 13 are eachslightly longer than the supporting plate 12, the lower outline 22forming a continuation of the shape of the gun stock 10.

The intermediate cushioning member 14 is preferably provided With one ormore air pockets 23, the air pockets 23 being closed at one end by thesupporting plate 12 and at the other end by the shoulder engagingcushion 13. The supporting plate 12, intermediate cushion and shoulderengaging member may all be secured together by cementing, vulcanizing orother appropriate means and it Will thus be observedthat a plurality ofair pockets 23 are provided from Which the air may escape only throughthe pores of the sponge rubber body 14. The foregoing structure providesa pad of great resiliency Which is adapted to resist the recoil moreeffectively due to the presence of the air pockets Which entrap air tobe forced out through the pores of the rubber.

The air pockets 23 are preferably provided with a plurality of resilientbodies 24 whichY are capable of coming into engagement with thesupporting plate 12 and shoulder enraging` member 13 at different stagesin the deformation or distortion of the pad. The resilient bodies 24 maytake many different forms, depending upon the size and shape of the airpockets 23, but in the embodiment shown in Figure 3 a plurality ofcylindrical air pockets 23 are provided with substantially cylindricalrubber plugs 24, the rubber plugs being of slightly smaller diameterthan the air pockets 23.

The rubber plugs 24 are preferably madev of different sizes in order toadapt the resiliency of the recoil pad to the individual needs of anymarlrsman and in the present embodiment, which is to be regarded as eX-emplary, the upper and lower plugs or resilient bodies 24 are slightlyshorter than the length of their air pockets 23. The next tvvo resilientbodies 25 and 26 may be made still shorter and the middle resilient body27 may be the shortest of all, assuming` that it is desired to provide apad having the greatest rgsiliency or give adjacent the resilient body 2lt should, of course, be understood that if the individua-l marlsmanprefers the feel of a recoil pad Which is stiffer at the center andWhich is not resilientor soft at other points, this result can bereadily accomplished byproviding resilient bodies of appropriate lengthat the points desired. In general the resiliency or softness of the padis increased by providing shorter resilient bodies 24 at any'particularpoint and in some cases the resilient bodies may be omitted entirelyfrom certain air pockets.

The operation of the recoil pad shown in Figures 1 to 5 is as follows:When the recoil pad is subjected to pressure between the shoulder of themarlrsman and the gun stock 10 on recoil of the gun, the pad isdistorted from its usual shape and the major portion of the distortiontakes place in the intermediate rubber cushion 14. The shoulder`engaging port-ion 13 of the pad is also capable of permitting somedistortion but is preferably of sufficient stiffness to distribute theforce of the recoil over a greater area of the cushion 14. As theshoulder engaging portion 13 is forced toward the supporting plate 12,the air entrapped in the air pockets 23 is forced out through the poresof the sponge rubber 14 at a very high velocity, the air tending toincrease the resilient resistance of the cushion 14. As soon as theshoulder engaging portion -13 approaches a certain stage of distortionrelative to the supporting plate 12, the longest resilient bodies-24come into vengagement with the supporting plate 12 and shoulder engagingmember 3 and tend to increase the resistance ofthe pad. At anothersubsequent stage of distortion of the pad the resilient bodies 25 and 26may come into engagement with the Walls of their air pockets'and finallythe shortest resilient body 27 may come into operative engagement withthe Walls of its air pocket to increase the resistance of the pad.

lt Will thus be observed that the resilient bodies 24 and 27 areadapted-to provide a pad of predetermined characteristics capable ofmeeting the individual needs of any marksman and the resilient bodiescome into operative engagement With the other parts of the pad atdifferent stages in the distortion'of the pad, thereby regulatingl theresiliency at any predetermined point. lf the marksman Wishes to protectany particular point uponA his shoulder, such as a spot which tends tobecome sore, he may do so by diminishing the length or size of therubber plugs 24 at that point in the pad, thereby making the pad softerat that point. It should be noted also that the resultingcharacteristicsof the pad are due in part to the shapes of the respective resilientbodies and their air pockets, and the resilient bodies themselvesdiminish the volume of air in the air pocket.

In the embodiment shown in Figures 6 and the air pocket 23 is anelongated air pocket having rounded ends 28 and the pocket eX- tendsacross substantially the entire end of the gun stock. In this embodimentthe resilient body 24 comprises a rubber body having an outline 29substantially complementary to the shape of the air pocket 28. One side29 of the resilient body 2lin Figures 6 and 7 may be flat, While theopposite side BO may be provided With a concave or convex surface,spaced somewhat from the shoulder engaging portion 1.3 of the pad.

In the form shown in Figure 6 the resilient body 24 is thicker at themiddle, thereby increasing the-resistance of the pad at the center afterthe pad has been deformed a predetermined amount, that is, after theshoulder engaging portion 13 is compressed suiiiciently to engage therubber body 24. If it is desired to malle the center of the recoil padsofter the rubber body or filler 24 may be cut down to the concave shapeillustrated at 3l.

It Will thus be observed that I have invented an improved recoil padincluding a resilient casing and one or more resilient bodies carriedthereby, by means of Which the resilient characteristics of the pad maybe regulated or predetermined at any point and adapted to suit theindividual feel of the user. The present invention is of peculiarimportance to marksmen Who find that some certain portion of theshoulder requires additional protection or greater softness of the padand in general the present recoil pad is adapted to give a maximum ofsatisfactory results in every individual case.

While I have illustrated and described two specific embodiments of myinvention I do not Wish to be limited to the precise details ofconstruction set forth but desire to avail myself of Vall changes Withinthe scope of the appended claims. Y x Having thus described my inventionwhat I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the UnitedStates is:

1. In a recoil pad for guns, a resilient cushion comprising a supportingmember, a shoulder engaging member, an intermediate cushioning structurecomprising a body formed With an air pocket and a resilient membercarried in said pocket and formed to produce apad 0f predeterminedresilient characteristics.

2. In a recoil pad for guns, a resilient cushion comprising a supportingmember, a

shoulder engaging member, an intermediatev cushioning structurecomprising a body formed With a plurality of air pockets, and resilientmembers carried in said pockets and adapted to be .distorted insuccession at various stages of distortion of said pad to adapt the padto the individual feel of the marksman.

3. A recoil pad for guns comprising a rear supporting Wall, and a frontshoulder engaging Wall of resilient material, an intermediate resilientmemberhaving an air pocket eX- tending longitudinally of said pad,and aresilient member of predetermined thickness for engaging between saidWalls at a predetermined amount of distortion of said pad, to suit theneeds of an individual marksman. l

1l. A recoil pad for guns comprising a rear supporting Wall, and a frontshoulder engaging Wall of resilient material, an intermediate resilientmember having a plurality of air pockets, and a plurality of` resilientmembers carried in ysaid pockets for engagement between said walls atdiii'erent stages of distortion of said pad.

5. In a recoil pad for guns, the combina-- tion of a resilient casingforming a recoil pad, With resilient means carried Within said casingand adapted to engage the Walls of said casino upon distortion of saidpad, said resilient means'being shaped to produce a predeterminedresiliency of said pad by the engagement of said resilient means WithAthe Walls of said casing at different stages of distortion of vsaid pad.Y

6. In a recoil'pad, the combination of a resilient casing with aplurality of resilient bodies of different size for engaging the Wallsof said Vcasing at different stages of distortion of said pad. y 7. In arecoil pad for guns the combination of a support With a resilient rubbercushion carried by said support and having a closed air pocket, saidcushion comprising porous rubber adapted to throttle the passage ofairfrom said pocket to improve the y resilient characteristics of said pad.

8. Inra recoil pad for guns the combination of a support with -aresilient rubber cushion'carried by said support and having a closed airpocket, said cushion comprising porous rubber adapted to throttle thepassage of air from said pocket to improve the resilient characteristicsof said pad, and a resilient rubber body in said pocket for engaging theWalls of said pocket after said pad is deformed 'a predetermined amount.

9. In a recoil pad for guns the combination of a support With aresilient rubber cushion carried by said support and having a closed airpocket, said cushion comprising porous rubber adapted to throttle thepassage of air from said pocket to improvev the resilientcharacteristics of said pad, and a resilient rubber body in said pocketfor engaging the Walls of said pocket after said pad is deformed apredetermined amount,

said body having a predetermined outline for engaging at different partsof the pad Wall at diferent times to adapt the resilient char-y -5aoteristics to the feel of the user.

10. In a recoil pad for guns the combination of a support with aresilient rubber Cushion carried by said support and having a closed airpocket, said pocket extending m transversely to the stock of the gunupon which the pad is used, and said Cushion co1nprising porous rubberadapted to throttle the passage of air from said pocket to improve theresilient characteristics of said pad.

ll. In a recoil pad for guns the combination of a support with aresilient rubber cushion carried by said support and having a closed airpocket, said pocket extending` transversely to the stock of the gun upon'-20 which the pad is usech and an elongated resilient body in said airpocket, said resilient body being thickened adjacent the middle of thepad to cause initialengagement With the Wall of said pocket at themiddle of the par.

l2. In a recoil pad for guns, the combination of a resilient rubber bodyhaving a plurality of air pockets with a plurality of resilient bodiesin said pockets for Changing so the resilient characteristics of thepad, said bodies being graduated in length to engage the Walls of saidpockets at different degrees of distortion.

In Witness whereof, I hereunto subscribe :i5 my name this Q'day ofAugust, 1929.

ALBERT H. AMMANN.

